UN calls for $ 4.4 billion in emergency aid to Afghanistan, but raises $ 2.4 billion

Since the Taliban took power in Afghanistan last year, the humanitarian situation has worsened, with some “selling their children and their organs” for money to buy food. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres today painted a grim picture of life under the Taliban at the Digital Donors Conference for Afghanistan.

The aim of the conference is to raise $ 4.4 billion (4 4 billion) in emergency aid, which the UN has never asked for for a country. The UN is three times the amount it wanted to charge Afghanistan a year ago.

The goal was not reached. In all, 41 countries pledged $ 2.4 billion. Netherlands Contributes 20 million euros† The largest sums come from the British with $ 386 million and the Germans with $ 220 million.

The United States has pledged more than $ 200 million on the condition that all money go directly to NGOs and the UN so that the Taliban rulers do not see even a cent of it. The UN says all money will be transferred to aid agencies.

Women’s education

Since the Taliban ousted the Afghan government last year, about $ 9 billion of Afghan assets abroad have been frozen and the economy has collapsed. 95 percent of the population does not have enough to eat and nine million people are at risk of starvation. If no action is taken, one million children are at risk of starvation.

There was much criticism of the Taliban during the conference, which reintroduced many of the harsh Islamic rules of the 1990s. In particular, the decision not to allow girls over the age of 11 to attend school was a stumbling block for those attending the conference. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called on the Taliban to open all educational institutions to all.

In Afghanistan, women protested against the education ban last weekend: